In the organizational structure of a business, departments such as legal, accounting, administration, and human resources all play crucial roles in management, operations, and are closely tied to the development of the enterprise. However, the cost for a business to maintain a legal team is relatively significant. Additionally, businesses often have to recruit personnel for the legal department frequently due to a relatively high turnover rate for this position. This has led many businesses today to prioritize using the services of in-house counsel from reputable law firms to align with specific business needs and the actual situation of the enterprise. Through this article, A&D will provide readers with an objective and in-depth understanding of the role and benefits of in-house counsel in enterprises.
Role of in-house counsel in enterprises In-house counsel are often experienced lawyers or teams of lawyers who have provided legal advice to businesses in various sectors and industries. Therefore, in-house counsel play a significant role in the operation and development of enterprises. These roles are most evident in the following areas:
Ensuring compliance: In-house counsel play a role in ensuring that all activities of the enterprise comply with legal regulations. They help the enterprise ensure that internal activities, regulations, policies, contracts, transactions, and business strategies comply with current legal regulations, minimizing risks and disputes for the enterprise. Moreover, at the request of the enterprise, in-house counsel can conduct legal compliance checks for the enterprise and provide solutions to ensure compliance with legal regulations.
Strategic legal advice: In-house counsel not only play a role in ensuring compliance and internal operations but also help develop legal strategies and shape the overall business landscape for the enterprise. They provide strategic legal advice based on practical experience and understanding of policies, laws, and the development of sustainable business cooperation between the enterprise and partners in various fields such as business, trade, labor, investment, tax, insurance, data protection, etc.
Representation for the enterprise in legal matters: During the operation of the enterprise, disputes are inevitable. With the authority delegated to them, in-house counsel can represent the enterprise to protect its legal rights and interests in the dispute resolution process. With extensive knowledge and experience, in-house counsel sometimes help negotiate to reach a settlement, avoiding dispute resolution through litigation or arbitration.
Moreover, in-house counsel can represent the enterprise in working with partners, customers, employees, or other third parties. In many cases, enterprises will require in-house counsel to participate in working sessions, inspections, and checks by state agencies to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the enterprise.
Benefits of in-house counsel in enterprises Reducing internal operational costs: Using in-house counsel based on the business situation in each stage or for specific events and needs allows the enterprise to proactively negotiate with in-house counsel to adjust working hours, limit costs, and handle cases reasonably instead of operating a legal team regularly with periodic operating costs regardless of business conditions and actual needs of the enterprise. Therefore, using services from in-house counsel significantly reduces costs for the enterprise. Additionally, the enterprise also reduces the risk of administrative fines or disputes related to compensation and penalties with partners, customers, employees, or other third parties.
Deep and practical legal advice: As lawyers with extensive knowledge and experience in the legal fields they provide services in as well as the business situation in the market, in-house counsel will provide deep, practical, objective, and most suitable legal advice.
Serving according to the needs and time of enterprises: With the nature of an independent legal service provider, in-house counsel will provide legal services flexibly according to the customer’s requirements with costs designed to suit job requirements. This creates convenience and proactivity from both sides in their work and helps the enterprise shape its operating structure and costs in the short and medium term.
Suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): The majority of businesses in Vietnam are small and medium-sized enterprises. Therefore, saving costs on maintaining an enterprise legal team and using the services of in-house counsel from reputable law firms provides an effective solution in terms of resources while optimizing management and operations for the enterprise.
